Jeffrey Archer faces New Zealand Visa difficulties for book tour

Former British politician Jeffrey Archer may not be granted a New Zealand Visa to visit the country on his world book promotion tour because of his criminal record.

Jeffrey Archer may not be issued a New Zealand Visa because of his past conviction.

Archer is scheduled to arrive in the country next month and is being promoted as a keynote speaker at a Cure Kids charity dinner to be held in Wellington.

The New Zealand immigration Act bars the entry of anyone who has been convicted and sentenced to more than 12 months in prison within the previous 10 years. Lord Archer was convicted and sentenced to four years' imprisonment in 2001 on charges of perjury and perverting the course of justice.

A New Zealand Visa waiver can be granted, but the Immigration Service has not confirmed that this will be granted.

Immigration head Nigel Bickle said all temporary entrants to New Zealand are required to declare any criminal convictions and that any such convictions are part of consideration of whether a person meets the character requirements for the granting of a visa.

"When Jeffrey Archer applies for a visa, Immigration New Zealand will give consideration to the nature of his convictions relative to the purpose of his visit," Mr Bickle said.

Archer's publisher, Macmillan, was confident he would be allowed in.
Archer has not had a problem when visiting Australia, which he has done four times since his conviction.

Lord Archer's convictions relate to a 1987 libel trial in which he sued the Daily Star newspaper for reporting that he slept with a prostitute, which he won the case and received 500,000 in damages. However, allegations that he fabricated an alibi in the case surfaced in 2000, and a year later he was found guilty of perjury and perverting the course of justice.

The New Zealand Visa Bureau is an independent consulting company specialising in helping people with their New Zealand Visa applications to the New Zealand Embassy.